Page 68 of The Dragon With A Girl Tattoo
Kherty was silent for a few seconds, then said, “That name is known to me, unfortunately.Very well.I don’t see how a demon could reach theWepwawetwithout my crew or me being aware of its presence, but assuming it has, we will conduct a search of the ship for both it and your mate.I will alert you if we find the demon.”
Yrian watched as the ferryman and his minion strolled off, his mind turning over the possibilities.There was only one way into the Duat, and that was on theWepwawet.Which meant if Kashi was having Becket brought to him, she had to be on board.
“If she’s here, I will find her,” he said to no one, and after dropping their luggage at the cabin the ferryman had grudgingly placed at his disposal, he began to search.
The passengers were less than thrilled at his demands to inspect their cabins, but only one gave him any real trouble.
“You can’t come in here!”the man snapped, his glare prodigious.“This is my cabin.I paid for it!”
“My mate has been kidnapped—” Yrian started to explain, but when the man slammed the door shut in his face, he decided to take matters into his own hands.
So to speak.
He shifted into dragon form, kicked the door off one of its hinges, and stomped into the cabin, the door hanging crookedly behind him.
The man squawked, but after Yrian checked the bathroom for signs of Becket, he marched out, shifting back into human form as the man shouted obscenities after him.
“There’s a problem with his door,” Yrian told a crewman who came running at the noise, then blithely continued his search.
It wasn’t until he reached the hold that the increasing sense of worry that gripped him was suddenly eased.
He could feel her presence.It was an awareness that was foreign to him, but he accepted it just as he accepted the fact that Becket had found her way into his benighted heart.
“Becket?”he said loudly, squinting through the dim light at all the trunks, crates, and luggage, and even a motorcycle, that crowded the hold.The air in it was stifling and stale, and he had a sudden surge of panic as he thought of Becket being confined there.
A muffled thumping caught his ears, and it was only a matter of a few seconds before he located her in a massive leather and wood trunk.He all but ripped the lid off it, relief driving away the fear as he gazed down on a red-faced, sweating, furious Becket.
“You are my mate,” he told her, lifting her out from where she’d been crammed into the trunk, his hands on her waist as she tried to stand but crumpled when her legs failed.He removed the gag that had been tied across her face, his fingers gentle on the red marks left on the corners of her mouth.
“What a—oh my god, the pins and needles have started, ow, ow, ow!—what a bizarre thing to announce while rescuing me,” she said, clutching his arms as he helped her over to sit on a packing crate.
“You were unclear on the subject before,” he told her, struggling to leash his fire, lust, and need to reassure himself that she was not harmed.“But by now, it should be clear to you that we are meant to be mated.I felt it was important you know that fact, hence why I mentioned it.”
She gave a hiccuping sort of laugh as she slid a glance upward at where he stood, one protective hand on her back.“How very thoughtful of you to keep me informed.No, thank you, I don’t need you to carry me.If I take your arm, I think I can walk out all the pins and needles.How did you find me?Where are we?Are we in the Duat?And did you catch Candy?”
Slowly, he helped her exit the hold and climb the two flights of stairs to the cabin deck.“Technically, yes, we have started the journey to the Duat.We destroyed the demon named Andromalius, but could not find the one who took you.No, this way.The ferryman has given us a cabin.”
“What about Candy?”she asked as they made their way to the bow of the ship.
“We have not caught that demon, no.You are certain it was that one, and not another?Christian dispatched many demons during your performance, and his guard didn’t get a good look at the one who took you,” he said, a new worry moving to the top of his mental list.
“Yes, it was Candy who drugged me.”Becket rubbed the side of her neck.“I woke up about an hour ago.I thought I was in a coffin at first, but then realized I wouldn’t be folded up like a fortune cookie.Thank god you found me.I really need to pee, and thought I might have to just give in and go if you didn’t find me.”
“You were that confident I would come after you?”he asked, pleased that she had such faith in him.
“Of course.You’re an honorable man, Yrian.You promised to guard me, so I knew that you’d come after me, and since there was really nowhere else that Candy would take me, I was pretty sure you’d look here for me,” she said as they entered the room.“Oooh, this is nice!We have views on both sides.I take it you haven’t searched for Candy on the ship?”
“Not for that specific demon, but I will,” he answered, releasing her so she could use the toilet.
“Whew!So much better,” she said, emerging from the room a few minutes later to accept the glass of sparkling water he poured for her.“Oh, that’s perfect; I’m more than a little parched.Right, now what?”
“Now I must claim you, since we have been parted,” he said, removing his clothing before peeling back the blankets from the bed.
“You wha—ooh!”Her eyes widened at the sight of him, her gaze crawling over his chest, arms, belly, and, finally, rod.“Man alive, Yrian!You are drop-dead gorgeous.Your legs—”
“No,” he told her, deciding that the time spent in the overly hot hold had scrambled her wits a bit, and accordingly assisted by stripping her of the now-dusty clothing.He had her naked and onto the bed in a few seconds, his hands instantly taking possession of her delectable breasts.“There is no time for the cataloging of the parts of me that you enjoy looking at.Now is the time for claiming, following which I will allow you to admire my chest and rod, after which I will take my turn admiring your parts.Particularly your breasts and hips.”
She laughed, her hands warm on his arms as he bent to breathe fire on her chest.“You’re the only man I know who can look so stubborn at the same time you clearly want to indulge in some really steamy sexy time.”
